Insurance Clauses News

The Bisso Doctrine takes its name from the 1955 U.S. Supreme Court case, Bisso v. Inland Waterways Corp., in which it was established in a majority opinion of the Court that exculpatory clauses in towing contracts are invalid as a matter of public policy. That decision has had serious impact on the United States towing industry, and has affected decisions on whether to make U.S. choice of law and forum applicable to towing contracts where there were other options. It nonetheless remains the law of the land.

London law firm Lawrence Graham LLP says owners and charterers should beware a rash of disputes caused by the recent high bunker prices. Writing in the October issue of Lawrence Graham’s newsletter, Shipping Lawgram, Imogen Rumbold, partner in the shipping law team, says, “Forecasting oil prices is difficult but it is easy to forecast what will happen when fuel prices spike. A period of high bunker prices is always followed by a rash of disputes between charterers and owners and between bunker suppliers and charterers followed by an upsurge in arrests as all parties try to collect debts. The biggest loser is usually the owner, who may face legal costs and delays to the vessel under a new charter, caused by defaults of the previous charterer.

The Joint Hull Committee's (JHC) project to produce a new set of hull insurance clauses which is intended to reflect the needs and requirements of today's shipowners and insurers has been completed on time. The new clauses, which have been drafted following extensive consultation with shipowners and other interested parties, will be available for use from November 1 and will be known as the International Hull Clauses. The revised clauses are not a major rewrite of the 1983 and 1995 Institute Time Clauses currently in use. Rather, they have been updated so as to embrace current market practice whilst recognizing and supporting the role of ISM, flag states and classification societies.